Wake up!
- By Sian Taylor
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- 07 Jan, 2020
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Getting through New Year winter blues
Movement.
I can hear something, but the blanket of darkness smothers my eyes shut.
Or perhaps it’s that opening my eyes requires effort.
And I’m struggling to summon the energy.
I rouse enough to recognise it’s still dark outside.
My mind starts to work itself into a whirr of all the things I need to do. An endless list.
My body still slumped. Immovable.
It takes a few minutes before I finally rise almost dragging myself out of bed.
Stumbling into the bathroom.
As I head for breakfast my body has finally caught up and I start to feel like I can finally prepare for the day ahead.
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When left to my own timetable, waking up is natural.
When it’s scheduled with work, then it becomes more forced. And dark winter mornings feel the worst.
I’ve thought about what’s in my influence to make the start of my day work better for me. It would be great if all my days were more relaxed in the morning, but that’s not always possible.
What does make a difference is how I experience those first few minutes at the start of the day, just as I wake.
The more of a fight it is, the more the first couple of hours of my day are an internal battle of wills – on one side anxiety driven by a long to-do list, on the other side desire to sleep to push away all that I need to get done.
And the longer that internal battle rages, the less productive and satisfying my day is. The less happy I am.
So as I wake up, as I become aware of those first few moments in the morning, as the one side is groaning at the idea of waking up, I’m trying to take a few minutes where I don’t move but instead relax.Focusing on the moment in the here and now. Set aside some of those thoughts that are listing all the things I should be jumping out of bed to get done and, think and feel those few minutes of bliss before rising.
It shortens the internal battle, it lessens the antipathy enough that I start my day more quickly and in a much better frame of mind.
As the days slowly lengthen, I’m looking forward to waking with the sunlight peeking around the curtains and helping me smile in the morning.
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